Jury finds man not guilty on all charges in Ypsilanti homicide

For the second time in 2014, a jury found a homicide suspect not guilty on all counts as Allante Percy walked out of a Washtenaw County courtroom Thursday morning about to be a free man.

Percy, 22, was charged with open murder, being a felon in possession of a firearm and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony for the Nov. 1 homicide of Edward Gwinner. The jury’s verdict Thursday morning found him not guilty on all counts.

Pearlie Beverly, Percy’s grandmother, was overcome by emotion outside the courtroom after the verdict was read out. Beverly said she couldn’t wait to pick Percy up and take him home.

“I’ve been praying for days and hours and nights and weeks and months,” Beverly said, “asking God to save my grandson. Thank you, Jesus.”

Percy, who declined a plea deal on Monday morning before the trial began, was accused of firing several shots outside a party on Nov. 1 in the 600 block of Armstrong Drive in Ypsilanti. Prosecutors alleged the 29-year-old Gwinner was shot once in the chest.

Allante PercyCourtesy of WCSO

Gwinner was taken to St. Joseph Mercy Hospital in Superior Township, where he died from his injuries. According to police, Gwinner was coming to the defense of his sister, who was embroiled in a domestic dispute at a party in that location.

The not-guilty verdict was a bitter pill to swallow for his mother, Debra Gwinner. Speaking to The Ann Arbor News outside the Washtenaw County Trial Court, Debra Gwinner appeared crestfallen.

“They should have made him guilty,” she said. “A lot of people saw who did it. And, the fool goes free.”

It’s the second murder case this year that ended in the accused walking out of the courtroom without a conviction.

In May, juries found Terrence Parker not guilty and hung on murder charges for Willie Wimberly, who were both charged in the homicide of Brandon Charles. Wimberly is scheduled to be retried in the case on Nov. 3.

Ypsilanti police Sgt. Joe Yuhas was frustrated by the acquittal of Percy as well. As the jury’s verdict was read, he sat next to Washtenaw County Assistant Prosecutor Blake Hatlem shaking his head.

Outside the courthouse, Yuhas chose his words carefully.

“I don’t agree with the jury’s verdict,” Yuhas said. “However, I will respect it. And, I should probably just leave it at that.”

Hatlem left the courthouse before The Ann Arbor News could ask him for comment on the verdict.

Meanwhile, it’s a triumphant result for Percy and his attorney, Walter White.

Percy was all smiles as he was led out of the courtroom by Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Office deputies. He was to be taken back to the Washtenaw County Jail to be processed and then would be released.

White said the prosecution’s case depended on a single witness, whose story changed multiple times. He said the evidence presented in court simply wasn’t believable enough to convict Percy.

“The jury really didn’t have any other choice,” he said. “That was their whole case.”

He added, “It was the correct verdict. That was a very difficult case for the prosecutor, and also for us.”

Kyle Feldscher covers cops and courts for The Ann Arbor News. He can be reached at kylefeldscher@mlive.com or you can follow him on Twitter. Find all Washtenaw County crime stories here.